This was my first time here. The food was delicious. We had the Taiwanese popcorn chicken as an appetizer. The chicken had a unique flavor and my husband and I finished them quickly. Both of the entrees were equally good. Would definitely recommend this place and I will be back. read more

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Always love to eat at Cafe88 when I was a student at UVA, missing the beef noodle soup very much. will be there when I am in town.

The weather was really nice when I went, so I appreciated how there were tables outside as well. For $12, the portion was pretty big and I had a hard time finishing the entire bowl. Overall recommend for those who crave a solid bowl of noodles! read more

Cafe 88 - Braised Beef Noodle - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Always good!! Love their eggplant, beef and broccoli and sesame chicken. It's the only Chinese restaurant we do to any more.

Authentic Taiwanese food. A delicious rotation of specials (in Chinese on the wall, or just ask the proprietor what's available!). Fast, friendly service. Literally the only downside to this place is that it's closed on Sundays. read more

Thank you Yelp for guiding us to this awesome place!!! It was our first time visiting Charlottesville and we had an awesome lunch before heading to our long trip home. Both bento lunches (Sweet & Sour Chicken and General Chicken) came with two side vegetables. Food was very tasty and did not disappoint! Employees were very friendly! read more

Cafe 88 - Sweet & Sour Chicken and General Chicken Bento Boxes.....YUMMY! - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Hidden gem here. My wife and I went the other week for the first time. I like to use Yelp to find these hidden gems and seems to be paying off. I got the braised beef noodle soup and realized that I can't use chopsticks too well in that noodles fell back in the bowl, splashed and stained my shirt...lol That meat was so tender, but just maybe a bit too much fat on it. The broth was amazing and probably had been cooking all day. My wife had the bento box with chicken and veggies. She still is talking about the eggplant, so much it is now our code word for snuggle time! :-) Or is that the eggplant emoji, not sure. :-) The only other eggplant that comes close is Afghan Kabob on Emmet St. Reading other reviews about bad service and an attitude, we didn't experience any of that. It was a really good lunch. read more

There was a really cute vibe to this place the second I walked in. It felt like the combination of a Chinese takeout restaurant and a home kitchen. The owners were incredibly friendly and were quick to help when they noticed the confused expression on my face. They recommended me the beef noodle soup so I ordered it alongside the scallion pancakes, amazing chicken bento box, and shrimp and chive dumplings. The beef noodle soup was a little pricey, but I felt like it was worth it especially because it tasted so flavorful and overall very authentic. It made me seriously miss my mother's cooking! I also really enjoyed the scallion pancakes; however, they were a little too oily for my preference. It also came with some hot sauce and soy sauce. I think the amazing chicken bento box was definitely worth it. The chicken was really saucy, juicy, and flavorful. AND omg the cabbage and green beans that came with it were oddly realllllly good. Lastly, the shrimp and chive dumplings were cooked and seasoned perfectly. JUST BE CAREFUL BECAUSE THEY'RE SUPER HOT WHEN THEY'RE FRESH. Altogether, I really recommend this place because of it's freshness and authentic-ness. The owners were adorable and super friendly; however, after coming here several times I've noticed that the owner can be a little weird.... On several occasions she has told me that I should probably stop ordering so much food because "it's too much." At first I thought it was very maternal and cute, but now it's kind of offensive especially since I usually go there around the afternoon when it's my first meal of the day. I'm not a huge fan of it and really boggles my mind because it just comes off as if they don't want my business. Regardless, I would definitely come again whenever I'm craving a good ol homecooked meal! read more

Cafe 88 - Amazing Chicken Bento box - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Cafe 88 is very reminiscent of NY Chinatown Mom & Pop shops. Service is bare minimum where you order and pick up food from the counter even if you're eating in. Seems more like a take-out than an eat-in place. I'm totally ok with that as long as the food is tasty. We ordered two bento (amazing chicken and pork chop), dan dan noodles, and the fried seafood shumi. I would skip out on the shumi but everything else was pretty good. They didn't have the scallion pancakes available that day. The beef noodle soup everyone talks about in their reviews was not on their menu so it's not available daily. All the prices ends with an 8 which is very Chinese (8 is considered a lucky number). read more

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This is my favorite hidden treasure in Charlottesville. A small homey shop run by a husband and wife, this is as authentic as Taiwanese food in Charlottesville gets. My favorite dishes are the beef noodle soup, wonderful chicken, and the shredded pork with tofu. They also have a side of the menu with more typical Asian-American food items, but I strongly recommend trying the authentic style food if you're willing to be more adventurous! The food isn't the cheapest, averaging about $9-$11 per dish, but I'm always glad to pay seeing how hard the owners work! They're there everyday, and the wife is both the cashier and server, while also cooking with the husband. Overall, I think this business deserves the local support. But don't worry, they give you a decent serving size that will have you walking out full! read more

The food here is a solid 4.5, but the service ranges from ok to horrible. I recommend the beef noodle soup (can't be taken to go, only on fridays and saturdays), but it usually has too much chili powder for my taste. I usually end up dumping half a cup of water in there before I eat. With that said, it's still the best in charlottesville. As for the service -- the owners never really seem to care about you or want your business. It's very barebones, which is fine, but a few times, I had seen them be downright rude, which is not so fine. read more

A Taiwanese husband and wife run this shop on their own and most of the customers are the international students from China who are studying at UVA, so you know this place is authentic. The couple has lectured me for spending $4 on a peach from the grocery store next door, consistently tell me to eat slower, and chuckle at my Chinglish, so they are essentially my Asian parents in Charlottesville. That makes eating here all the better. When you order off the menu, you will notice that there are two sides - the Americanized Chinese (think Orange Chicken) and the Authentically Chinese (what you would get in Taiwan). I would highly recommend only ordering off the authentically Chinese side. Gotta love segmented menus! They also have specials on a board that you should definitely try. Almost everything is made from scratch, including the dumplings and the egg rolls. Apparently the Scallion Pancake is the only thing they buy, but it is actually one of my favorite appetizers to order. Here are the items I would recommend: 1. Appetizers: Steamed Pork Dumplings, Scallion Pancakes, Egg Rolls, Taiwanese Popcorn Chicken 2. Dishes: Braised Beef Noodle Soup, Sliced Pork with Bean Curd Bento Box (comes with fresh veggies and amazing eggplant in garlic sauce), Traditional Twice Cooked Pork over Rice, Stir-fried chili pepper with beef, and the Steamed Fish Fillets with Ginger (usually on the board of specials). If you come with a group of 4-5, you can order multiple dishes to sample. All the above dishes and appetizers are crowd pleasers, and I've brought a lot of non-Asians to this place who also love these dishes. So you can't go wrong ordering any of these items! Prices are completely reasonable and most dishes are under $10. Trust me when I tell you that this place is a gem. You will be completely satisfied after eating here. Just come before 8 PM, because that's when they close. read more

Very friendly. Very honest, Very special and tasty food. Very good price. Love it. We come back again to try more different dishes.

Fresh, hot, delicious! The menu may be sparse but what they do have listed is worth the try. We picked from both the dim sum menu and the bento box. The dim sum selection we tried was the the fried Seafod Shao Mai, Scallion Pancake, and Shrimp with Chives dumplings. I also threw an order of the Pineapple Fried Rice on there for good measure. The Pineapple Fried Rice was well seasoned and came with a hearty side serving of crisped sweet fried eggplant and sauteed bok choy in garlic sauce. I was impressed with how large the serving was for the price point. It was definitely a good value for the meal. The dim sum selections were also very good and packed a tasty flavor. Of course, as is the nature of most Chinese dishes the items did have a bit of grease to 'em but that's really all part of the fun. This is a great casual place to grab a quick bite. The restaurant itself is tucked away in the shopping center off of Preston Ave and there is ample parking nearby. There are places to sit and dine inside as well as outside on the patio space in front. read more

Cafe 88 - The pineapple fried rice with tofu and sides of bokchoy and eggplant was on point. I would definitely recommend. - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

For a small, family owned, hole-in-the-wall Chinese restaurant, I expected Cafe 88 to serve really great food in a nice environment: my experience unfortunately didn't live up to standards. The couple who own and run the restaurant were not very friendly, never asking us how the food tasted, or even smiling at the register. They had a fixed order-in, food-out mentality that gave the restaurant a poor, bland ambience. Food wise, we ordered the amazing chicken, beef noodle soup (only offered on Fridays) and the Thai salt and pepper chicken. All of these dishes were heavy, poorly seasoned, and underwhelming. The amazing chicken had a thick breeding, served with eggplant (which actually tasted the best of all the dishes we ordered) and white rice. The beef noodle soup had a good spice, but definitely missed the mark flavor-wise. The beef was tough, the noodles and broth both very bland. The salt and pepper chicken also didn't have much flavor, and tasted over-fried. I've been here a couple of times, and while the prices are good, the food, service, and ambience haven't made up for it. Would probably not go again. read more

Cafe 88 - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

So my mom doesn't understand why I get Asian food whenever I'm on vacation because I supposedly have "the best Asian food" in NYC but I do it anyways and I found Cafe 88. I was on the road back from Texas and stayed in Charlottesville for 2 nights. After being on the road for so long (driving 6-7 hours each day - I'm never pulling another road trip again especially in my new car - dumb, I know), I didn't want to stomach another meal from fast food chains so I came to this local mom & pop's restaurant before checking into my hotel. When I first had Taiwanese beef noodle soup in Queens, it was ehh ok but this, this right here is amazing. The beef was surprisingly tender and well-braised!!! The cut of meat is the shank, and because it's so muscular it's usually quite tough and not very flavorful but somehow Cafe 88 managed to make it good. Very, very impressive. Although I wished the noodles were better, the dish was still exceptional. As for the pork intestine, I don't know what possessed me to get it (I'm usually not an innards gal) but I'm glad I did. The pickled flavor of the vegetable definitely helps with any pungency that sometimes come with intestines plus they also added in birds eye (Thai) chilies so I also got that extra punch of spicy which is always nice. If I had attended UVA, I'd come here all the time. The Ah-Yi (meaning Auntie) is very kind and welcoming and the Taiwanese food here fares better than some NYC restaurants. read more

Cafe 88 - Braised Beef Noodle, pickled mustard greens and pork intestine (was actually pretty good) - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Cafe 88 is probably one of the hidden gems of Charlottesville for Asian cuisine. Sure, it does have some of your typical "American Chinese" type of dishes, but they also have some pretty good and authentic Taiwanese food. Now that being said, it's not going to be like straight from the night markets of Taipei - but it would satisfy your itch for Taiwanese food, whether that be with the beef noodle soup or other delicious delicacies that they have in store for you. The restaurant is small with limited seating, maybe about two tables of four, three tables of two, and seating for four across the counter - but it's a very homey feel to it with the restaurant owner's friendly service. read more

Cafe 88 may look like every other Asian take out restaurant but oh man! it's leaps and bounds better than any of the other greasy chinese food places we all shamefully crave. I was a bit skeptical at first because some of the previous reviews stated that the beef noodle soup was overhyped. I respectfully disagree. My noodle soup was AMAZING. The owner definitely did not skimp on the portion size and the amount of beef that topped off the bowl of noodles. I also got the crispy chicken which quickly became addicting. The best part of Cafe 88 however is the owner. She's so sweet and so passionate about the authenticity of her food. If I didn't live an hour away... I would be here all the time. read more

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On par with our local California Chinese restaurants - certainly hit the spot! Everything was cooked well - the side of eggplant was surprisingly a highlight and DELICIOUS! Highly recommended! read more

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I love the flavors of the food at this location. I've had their "amazing chicken", pork chop, and Taiwanese popcorn chicken. All the flavors are bold and have lots of hints of chinese five spice! The lunch bento box comes with a great amount of rice and side salad. I also appreciate the speediness of the services. read more

Very tasty Taiwanese home recipes. The beef noodle soup is outstanding. It's the perfect cure for a bad day. The aptly named "amazing chicken" is also worth mentioning especially when you get the eggplant as a side. And aside from the beef noodle soup (served Friday only), which is $12, you won't pay more than $10 for a meal that will almost surely fill you up. All in all, this is a great place to come to with a small group. That's the key. The location is too small for bigger parties and you can't get the beef noodle soup to go or to eat outside. And because it's such a small operation. It can take a while during the busy dinner hours. They also have good dim sum, which is like finding a unicorn in Charlottesville. Easily the best Taiwanese food in town. Value: 5/5 Taste: 5/5 Service: n/a Atmosphere: 3/5 read more

Cafe 88 - beef noodle soup served hot - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Probably one of my favorite restaurants in Charlottesville! Just a tiny, casual hole-in-the-wall restaurant run by a single Taiwanese lady (and maybe one or two helpers) who makes everything once you order it. Takes a bit of time, but you know it's literally coming fresh out of her kitchen. The "Wonderful Chicken" is fried white meat served with rice and veggies, and it truly is wonderful--one of my favorites. But nothing I've had is ever bad. It is perfectly home-cooked comfort food. Her beef noodle soup, offered only Fridays and Saturdays, is also phenomenal. Has just the right amount of spice added for a nice kick, with the noodles cooked to perfection. Definitely come here. You will be hooked. read more

Just wanna remind everyone in order to dine here prepared to be insulted. Brought my parents who dont have much knowledge abt the cuisine expecting to have a good experience since it used to be a highly rated place amongst student population in towns. Instead female owner / cashier at the place has been impatient and rude by throwing out words of contempt. After I demanded an apology I was shouted by the owner who said my parents do not deserve an apology. read more

Cafe 88 - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

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I wanted some Asian food and I was in the area, and I saw Cafe 88 had some good reviews, and it did not live up to expectations. The place is more of a hole in the one sort of restaurant, and it didn't seem that well kept. Nothing really looked that neat and the all the decorations were a little bit off. Service wasn't too amazing either. Then we get to the food, nothing special at all. It was just okay. I got the General Tso Shrimp, with a side of rice and it wasn't that amazing. It was just okay. It was decent for the price, that's the only thing. Probably won't be returning any time soon, I'm sure I can find some better Asian food in the area. read more

Not sure why the reviews are so good, it's very below average Chinese food. I ordered the Hunan beef entree but the cashier said I should get the bento box and I agreed- terrible decision. It came with a weird side of eggplant and green beans and then a tiny tiny portion of the human beef which was just really chewy. The green beans were bland and the eggplant was just gross so I ended up throwing half my meal away. Also the chef making our food wasn't wearing a mask. read more

Delicious lunch!!! Just enough portion for my lunch. Egg taste like tea spice egg. My childhood favorite. Price also reasonable $6 for this bowl of delicious read more

I recommend trying the beef noodle soup here! Very legit, reminds me of beef noodle soup at home except this one is way spicier than I usually eat. They have a good amount of chili oil so remember to have a glass of water at the side, and to not breathe in too fast..lest you get a coughing fit :p Dan dan noodles aren't really dan dan noodles, more like soy sauce based. Salt and pepper chicken were legit too, crispy with the Szechuan peppercorn pepper grounded on top, with some fried basil. read more

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Hole-in-the-wall place with great, authentic Taiwanese food! Good for in restaurant dining and take outs. Prices are cheap, service is fast, and the owners are super friendly. I usually get the 滷肉飯 (pork rice, it's not on the English menu) or the Amazing Chicken Bento. I love the pork nice because it's not overly greasy and the pork is lean and high quality. The flavor is also fantastic, with just the right amount of soy sauce and anise. The dish is small, but it's filling since there's quite a lot of meat and an egg to go with it. The fresh cilantro and white pepper salt adds a layer to the overall flavor, too! The Amazing Chicken Bento is another one of my favorites. The chicken is well seasoned and well cooked. It has a crisp outer layer and the overall consistency is nice and chewy. The side vegetable dishes vary from time to time. My favorites are the eggplants and the cabbage. It always reminds me of home! I've had their scallion pancakes, shrimp and chives dumplings, heavenly pancake, and fries chicken. They're all really delicious appetizers! The restaurant itself is small but I've never had problems finding a table. There are some tables out in the patio, too. Overall, a gem in Charlottesville and an awesome place to get authentic Taiwanese street food! I really hope they expand their menu a little bit more though! read more

Cafe 88 - Amazing Chicken Bento - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

I got the vegetarian chicken bento box and it was amazing. Everything was flavored and seasoned just right. The fake chicken tastes just like real chicken, and the vegetables were savory and delicious. I also got the hot and sour soup which was better than any other Chinese take out soup that I've had because it was loaded with tofu and veggies, making it actually hearty and filling unlike some other places which just make it flavored water. Great little hole in the wall/mom and pop shop. The service wasn't amazing. But, that's not the point of a hole in the wall restaurant. Since you order at the counter, it's not really a table service kind of place. Would definitely come back in the future. Bonus points for having vegetarian options. Love it! read more

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Before visiting the Three Notch'd Brewery, we wanted to fill up on food across the street. We saw that Cafe 88 had a nearly perfect score on Yelp and decided to give it a try. We weren't disappointed. I ordered the Wonderful Chicken bento box, my wife the Amazing Chicken (2 stars for name creativity). They came with rice and two seasonal vegetable sides for just under $9. As you can see in my picture, they obviously take care to have a colorful presentation. The purple vegetable was some kind of root, the green was bok choy I think. The chicken was moist with a tasty crunchy outside. Overall, a great place. Wish we lived in C'ville and could be regulars! (As an aside, they also had really great smelling mint hand soap in the bathrooms. Kind of random, but very pleasing) read more

Cafe 88 - Amazing chicken bento box - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

Sadly the quest for good Chinese food in Cville will continue. I was excited to give Cafe 88 another shot when I heard they had new ownership. Unfortunately, the food actually was worse this time. Most of my dishes had little flavor. The broccoli actually tasted sour. The rice was good. While there are not many good options for Chinese in Cville, the other places are better than Cafe 88. I will not be back. read more

Beef noodle soup is amazing! The portion is HUGE so I ended up taking some home for dinner :) read more

Cafe 88 - Beef noodle soup - Chinese Near Me - Charlottesville, Virginia

BOOHOO they ran out of the beef noodle soup :( After all the raves, I was extremely excited to be try the noodle soup. I went for the amazing chicken (or was it wonderful chicken?) bento box. The names are so similar that I kept getting confused. Anyways, my friend got the friend chicken and I got the dark meat chicken with spiced sauce. It sort of tasted like barbecue chicken but was nonetheless very tasty.The two side dishes that came with the bento box was stir-fried eggplant, which was heavenly (and i'm not a huge fan of eggplant!) and stirfry cabbage and mushroom. Both were very large portions for a side dish and overall a great deal for a bento box. ($7.88) Being the huge critic I am on bubble tea, I decided to try the taro bubble tea and my friend ordered the mango bubble tea. Halfway through our meal, the owner finally decides to bring out the bubble tea. We weren't sure if she was too busy to make the bubble tea right away or what, but we were the only ones dining at the time. Overlooking the service, the taro bubble tea was okay. But honestly, the boba bubbles were lacking! I got some bubbles in my first and second sips but the third, fourth......and so on?.....none! There were literally like 10 bubbles in the "bubble" and I'm not even exaggerating. Now, I'm not sure if the taro drink was made out of powder b/c she didn't make it in front of me, but I have a terrible feeling it was!! I won't be trying their bubble tea again but will definitely be back to try the beef noodle soup!! fyi- bubble tea is discounted with the purchase of a bento box read more

5 stars, because this is the only real Chinese I've had in Charlottesville. And it's pretty good Beef noodle soup -$10.50 or something. Was good, hot soup with fettucine noodles. A little expensive, would skip this next time Dan Dan noodles - the more I ate the more I liked. More soupy than I like dandan (and less oily), but good noodles Amazing chicken (or whichever was dark meat) - very good and awesome bento box. I wanted to order a bento box of just the eggplant it was so good. The other vegetables were also delicious Minimum credit card of $10 but easy to do. Small restaurant with limited seating. Will be back read more

I went back to Cafe 88 again 2 days ago and tried their beef noodle soup. The beef shank in the beef noodle soup is so tender, and I love that spiciness in the soup broth! If you have tried everything on their printed menu, try those listed on the wall in Chinese. The owner Jenny and her husband are so friendly and passionate about their cooking that I am sure they will be happy to suggest some good new options for you if you can't read the items listed in Chinese posted on the wall. Initially I was going to order the sautéed vegetables again in addition to my beef noodle soup, but Jenny told me that the beef noodle soup is quite big in size and will come with some Shanghainese bokchoy. So I may not be able to finish 2 items by myself. I really appreciate that honesty as I definitely don't want to waste food since I can't reheat my leftover in my hotel room. read more

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An authentic taiwanese restaurant in the middle of Charlottesville?? Why did it take me so long to check this place out? My loss. Our family of 4 stopped in for a very satisfying lunch this past Saturday. Very small shop with a handful of tables and a counter along the window. Appeared to be a husband and wife team taking orders, cooking, and cleaning up. We ordered the popcorn chicken, crispy pork chop over rice, and beef noodle soup. Everything was spot on! Not as good as the night markets of Taipei but having this gem in Charlottesville has made me a happy girl. read more

Best Chinese food in this area! It's homes taste...Healthy and delicious!! So hooked!!!

New ownership as of a few months ago. Don't use reviews any older than Oct/Nov 2017 as a basis for quality. I tried it today and ordered my standard Beef Noodle Soup and Scallion Pancakes. Neither were as good as at the previous ownership. The soup was fine but broth was lacking, meat was of a lesser quality and the noodles were way over cooked. The pancakes were smaller and soggy. I didn't finish it....a first. I will say that the menu looks interesting and better than the previous menu but it depends on whether she can execute it or not. I will try again and update. The service was much faster than previous years. read more

I decided to try this place out after seeing so many good reviews about the beef noodle soup. Coming in, I had my hopes high, but unfortunately, I was quite underwhelmed and disappointed by the lack of flavor in the broth. The beef noodle soup was very hearty, but there was little to no flavor. I tried adding sriracha and soy sauce to help, but it didn't. Maybe it was just a bad night, but I don't see myself returning. read more

We went there as a group of 7 people. The place is nice to go if you go there as a group since you'll be able to taste a variety of dishes at once. There are many "daily special" dishes on the wall that you can order besides the ones on the menu. We ordered 7 dishes and it was 12.5 for each person. The place is over all a good bargain for pretty decent food. read more

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